Archive for Soup

One of my favorite soups of late is this Chicken and Barley Soup, and I CAN’T BELIEVE I HAVEN’T BLOGGED ABOUT IT! I have made this soup several times, and I love it. Note to self: Make that soup again soon!

Anyway, that soup was the first time I had ever had barley, and I instantly became obsessed. So when I came across this Bean and Barley Soup from One Dad’s Kitchen, it instantly caught my eye. Barley? Check. Meatless? Always a bonus. Delicious? As it turns out, YES!

This soup is so good and so filling. It’s the perfect soup for cold fall or winter days. I love that it’s inexpensive, too. It makes about 6 servings, and there is at least half a bag of beans left to use for another time.

Directions:
Place the beans, barley, garlic, carrots, celery, onions, bay leaf, kosher salt, Italian seasoning, pepper, and tomatoes into your crockpot. Add 6 cups of water and stir well. Cook on low until the beans are tender and the soup is thick, about 8 hours.

At end of cook time, add the spinach and Parmesan cheese, and stir. Continue to cook on low until the spinach wilts, about 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and enjoy!

Is anyone still out there? I hope so, because I’m back! I know, I know, it’s been awhile. I do have a good excuse, though, if you’re at all interested. I had a baby! Our little boy was born at the end of February. He surprised us by coming two months earlier than expected, but he is doing very well and is a strong and healthy boy. Words cannot express how thankful I am.

It’s been a long time since I’ve really cooked anything, but now I’m trying my best to get back in the kitchen. I do miss cooking, but it’s been hard for me to get back into a routine. Hopefully the decision to revive my blog will give me the encouragement to get cooking!

Luckily for me, fall is coming up, and that means soup weather! There’s nothing I love more than snuggling at home all day while yummy soup simmers in the crockpot. In my opinion, that’s one of the few good things about fall and winter!

Here is our first soup of the fall and our first recipe after a long hiatus. Luckily, it’s a good one! I found this on Pinterest awhile back and, unfortunately, just now got around to making it. As it turns out, this recipe is delicious! Creamy tomato soup with chunky veggies and warm french bread for dipping … mmm, my mouth is watering again just thinking about it. This meatless meal is perfect for cold winter days, and is also budget-friendly. It gets 5 stars from us!

Directions:
Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, chicken broth, onions, oregano, basil, and bay leaf into your crockpot (I used a 3.5 quart crockpot, but any smaller would have been too small). Cook on low for 5-7 hours.

About 30 minutes before serving, prepare a roux. Melt butter over low heat in a saucepan and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth. Then, add this mixture back into the crockpot. Stir and add the Parmesan cheese, half and half, salt, and pepper. Cook on low for another 30 minutes or so until ready to serve.

So I know most people don’t eat chili in the summer, but I think for this one, you should make an exception. Bear with me …

I made this recipe for the first time during my Use Up the Ranch Dressing Mix Before It Expires Week (I didn’t succeed, by the way). I had saved it in my Google Reader, but wasn’t overly excited to try it. It looked good, of course, but nothing special.

Um. I hate saying this, but … I was wrong. This meal was very special. In fact, it was delicious. I actually thought about putting this on the menu again the following week, but I held myself back. That would be weird, after all.

But, I am counting down the time until it’s socially acceptable for me to make this again. And I will not be waiting until fall, that’s for sure.

Directions:
Place the chicken at the bottom of your crockpot. Add the corn, tomatoes, and black beans on top. Top with seasonings and ranch mix, and stir to combine. Pace the cream cheese on top, but do not stir in.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours. At end of cook time, shred the chicken, and stir it and the cream cheese into the chili until mixed together. Enjoy!

This is one of those recipes that I wish I had made when it was still cold out. Doesn’t that look like such a warm and inviting stew?? Mmm.

Well, even though summer is quickly approaching, I can see myself making this recipe again soon. Who cares if it’s warm out? This was delicious, and oh, so easy. You could change up the flavors, too, by adding as many or as few vegetables as you want! This recipe is pretty versatile.

So give this dish a try now or save it until winter. Either way, you should definitely try it!

I don’t know about you, but I have the hardest time going through an entire bag of potatoes before they go bad. I hate wasting food, but with potatoes, I just can’t help it. It’s not a huge problem, I guess, because they’re really cheap, but I still feel bad. So that’s why I put this on the menu during the same week I had planned on having Zuppa Toscana. I bought an 8-pound bag of potatoes for $3, and between both dishes, it used up about half of the bag. Then, maybe some baked potatoes for lunch on the weekend and some oven fries next week, and that should just about do it!

I had made a baked potato soup one other time, but wanted to try something different. I had saved this recipe from A Year of Slow Cooking, and since I had all the ingredients on hand—well, I had found a winner!

This soup was very good. It was just the right amount of thickness—not too thick, not too thin. The cream cheese made it nice and creamy, and the seasonings were great. I used 1/2 tsp. of red pepper, which almost made it a little too spicy. I might cut it back next time, but if you like spiciness, go for the 1/2 tsp.

Directions:
Place the potatoes into your crockpot. Add onion and garlic. Sprinkle in the seasonings, and pour in the broth. Cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 4. At end of cook time, use a potato masher or an immersion blender to mash the potatoes in the soup.

After smashing the potatoes, crumble in the cream cheese and put the lid back on. Cook on high for about 30 minutes, or until the cream cheese is melted and completely incorporated. Stir a few times during the 30 minutes.

I made this recipe because it was chosen for a cooking club that I’m a part of. I was really excited to try this, and honestly, I can’t believe I hadn’t made anything like it before. I’ve made two Taco Soup recipes in the past, but both of them involved beef and not chicken. I was definitely looking forward to trying this one.

You may notice one unique ingredient: the beer. I was a little worried about this, especially after adding it to the rest of the ingredients in the crockpot. I’ll just say that it was a very interesting combination of smells. But as it turns out, there was nothing to worry about. The soup was really, really good. It had the perfect amount of spice from the Rotel, and the beer gave it a little bit of a bitter taste. Next time, I might replace the beer with a cup and a half of chicken broth to see which version I like better.

Directions:
Place onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and tomatoes in your crockpot. Add taco seasoning, and stir to combine. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Cook on low for 8 hours.

At end of cook time, shred the chicken breasts. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup until well combined. Serve topped with shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips, if desired.

Every now and then I’ll come across a recipe that just intrigues me. For whatever reason, I can’t get it out of my head. I think about it and think about it until I can finally put it on the menu.

This very same thing happened to me when I saw the recipe for Curried Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup on Kitchen Stewardship. I was hesitant and curious about this recipe at the same time. It looked good. It sounded good. But would it taste good? I had never had anything like this before, so I really couldn’t imagine how it would taste. Plus, the curry was an up-in-the-air ingredient. Sometimes I like it, but if it’s overpowering, I really don’t. There was no way of guessing how this would turn out.

All I can say, though, is WOW! This soup was so good. Much better than I could have ever imagined. And look how healthy it is! The only unhealthy ingredient is the half-and-half, and with the amount of soup this makes, there ends up being very little half-and-half per serving. It’s so pretty, too! (Plus, as a bonus, this gave me an opportunity to use my new immersion blender. Unfortunately, I have not yet figured out how to use the immersion blender without splattering all over myself.)

Directions:
Place potatoes, carrots, onion, curry powder, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and ginger in your crock pot. Add chicken broth and stir. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. Puree soup in a blender a few cups at a time or use an immersion blender. Stir in maple syrup and cream. Enjoy!